Chapter Text
February, 2024
Soobin is once again falling victim to one of Beomgyu's awful ideas.
"This was a terrible decision," he grunts loudly because he thinks so and wants to make sure that Beomgyu knows it before they find him dead on a beach in Vietnam.
Tabloids would say something like, "K-pop idol found dead on a beach. Investigation points to heatstroke as the cause of death." Then he would die once more from mortification.
"It wasn't. You're just a big baby that can't handle a little bit of heat." He says that, but with his left hand he's flapping his shirt to cool down, and with the right one he scrolls through his camera's gallery.
A few strands of Beomgyu's hair cling to his forehead, glued with sweat. Soobin's hand itches to move them away. He would, but he has both hands busy holding his ice cream and Beomgyu's.
He licks his cone mechanically. It's already runny, so it's not that enjoyable anymore. Thus he eats what's left quickly, without really enjoying it. After he's done with it, a drop of Beomgyu's strawberry ice cream slides down his hand.
Soobin grimaces; it's sticky. "Your ice cream is melting." He nudges the cone towards him.
At last Beomgyu looks up from the camera, his eyes go directly to his precious melting mass—it'd be an insult to call it an ice cream in its current state—and they widen, then he lets out a shriek. He's acting as if it appeared out of nowhere, like he didn't beg Soobin to buy him that very ice cream just a few minutes ago.
"Shit, I forgot." Beomgyu fumbles with the camera and hastily hangs the strap around his neck.
Soobin shakes his head. "Dummy."
Their fingers brush briefly as he passes him the cone. Beomgyu tilts his upper body forward to avoid spilling it on the camera, then licks the ice cream and hums after a beat.
A spark of annoyance strikes Soobin as he watches Beomgyu stare at the defrosted dessert like it had offended his family personally.
"You don't have to eat it if you don't want it anymore." Soobin gets closer to him and tries to snatch the cone from his hand, but Beomgyu dodges his attempt. His sticky fingers curl around Beomgyu's wrist instead.
"I do want to," Beomgyu groans. Soobin arches an eyebrow, hand still around his wrist. They look at each other, neither willing to admit defeat. Then, Beomgyu crumbles. "I did want to," he whines. "It's just, um, the texture is not very pleasant." A hint of a sheepish smile grows on his face.
Soobin lets out a big sigh.
He pries the cone from Beomgyu's equally gooey fingers; the waffle cone is mostly soft because of the melted ice cream.
Beomgyu is right, it's not appetizing at all, but it'd be a waste to throw it away, so he decides to eat it regardless. Thankfully, he finishes it with just a couple of laps.
The cloying flavor of strawberry lingers on his tongue; he's more of a vanilla guy. He wipes his hand on his pants, but the tacky sensation on his fingers doesn't go away.
Great.
Beomgyu is making that face he always makes when he feels apologetic. Soobin doesn't have the heart to be mad at him when he's looking at him like a lost puppy. He's weak like that.
He pats Beomgyu's head with his clean hand, and he's finally able to put the rebel strands of hair away from his forehead. "Let's go back to the hotel."
Beomgyu's cheeks are ruddy from the heat, and his mouth maintains that perpetual pout of his. "Can we at least have some drinks when we get there?" he asks.
Soobin shrugs. "Sure." Beomgyu smiles happily at him.
They head towards the hotel, walking side by side, their shoulders occasionally brushing against each other.
He dares a glance at Beomgyu out of the corner of his eye. He is humming a cheerful tune; the black circles under his eyes have almost faded completely, and his skin has a healthy glow.
This break was seriously needed.
Vacations are scarce for K-pop idols, so Soobin didn't want to lose the opportunity to go abroad when he heard that the company would give them more than two days off out of nowhere.
The trip was sort of impromptu, and the other members had made plans beforehand; thus, it ended up being solely him and Beomgyu.
He had to plead with the company to "please let us go alone" and that "we can take care of plane tickets and hotel reservations". It would feel like any other work trip if their protocol team came along, defeating the whole purpose of getting away from work.
It's good that Soobin has perfected his image of a reliable leader and the company trusts him, since apparently traveling with other friends is okay, but "it's too risky if two members travel together"—on their own—and then they insisted that they're only allowing this "because it's Soobin-ssi".
Well, being the leader had to come in handy for once.
So far everything has gone smoothly; he made sure of it. He is not one to make plans, especially when traveling, but he felt that Beomgyu enjoying the trip was his responsibility, as he was the one who invited him.
He went as far as to set up the lock screen of his phone with an image of the exchange rate of the currency and download an image to indicate to not put cilantro in their food, since Beomgyu can't eat it, says it tastes like soap.
The itinerary he arranged wasn't too meticulous or strict but rather a checklist of what they could do (upon some research).
Luckily, they managed to visit most of the places on his list and ate a lot of local food. He has lost count of all the times they have eaten pho. To his surprise, he was able to persuade Beomgyu to eat shrimp, although he had to peel them for him, but a win is a win nonetheless.
When they arrive at the hotel, the front-desk staff, a middle-aged lady who reminds him of one of his aunts, welcomes them warmly. They greet her back politely.
The building they are staying at isn't too big or luxurious, but they both prefer it that way. Plus, it's close to the beach. They can even see the coast from their room's balcony.
Even so, Beomgyu insisted that walking is "romantic", so they had strolled around a lot.
"Are you going to take a shower now or later?" He asks while they wait for the elevator.
"Both?" Beomgyu fiddles with his camera strap. "I have sand in places where I shouldn't have it…" He winces. "So that's not up for discussion, but also, in a few hours we'll probably be sweaty again."
Soobin nods. "Yeah, probably."
The temperature here contrasts sharply with the current weather in Seoul. For some reason, today especially felt like hell on earth.
The elevator arrives in no time, putting an end to their conversation. As they go in—backs against the end wall of the elevator—they are followed by two young men (Vietnamese, judging by the language they are speaking).
The pair is right in front of them, so they have no choice but to watch as they playfully jab each other. He sees how the shorter one says something that makes the other laugh, and then the taller one leans down and gives him a kiss. Straight on the lips. Not a simple smooch, but a proper kiss.
It's unexpected. Coming across such a public display of affection is rare in Korea, where even a peck is frowned upon, not to mention that both are dudes.
Soobin isn't a prude, but he'd rather not watch two strangers make out like a creep. So he looks away, but there isn't much to see in a caged space; thus, his eyes wander until his gaze lands on Beomgyu, who is trying very pointedly to avoid the sight in front of them, eyes fixed on his shoes instead.
There's a ding, and then the mechanical sound of the doors opening and closing lets him know that they are alone, no steamy kisses shoved in their eyes anymore.
It's only been like ten seconds since they entered the elevator, but it feels like more time has passed.
Soobin continues to look at Beomgyu, amused at his bashful reaction to some PDA. Beomgyu's ears are beet red, and he shows no intention of stopping to stare at his shoes.
Soobin bumps their shoulders. Beomgyu yelps and looks back at him. Now Soobin has a full view of his flushed face. "Why so shy?" He snorts.
"I'm not shy," Beomgyu screeches, then deflects: "You are a perv." He points at him with his finger, accusingly.
"What? How-" The elevator arrival chimes, and Beomgyu bursts out through the doors as if he were being chased.
Whoa.
That was… cute.
He shakes his head to chase the thought away, then gets out of the elevator too.
When he gets to their room entrance, Beomgyu is already pulling his wallet from his pocket. He fumbles with it as he searches for the room key. Soobin waits for him to open the door, since he's responsible for the keycard.
In fact, they have two keys, but they leave the other one in the safe, as Soobin can be a bit clumsy and forgetful sometimes. It wouldn't be the first time he misplaced a keycard. That's partly why their protocol team always keeps an extra key for all their rooms when they travel abroad.
So, this time, only Beomgyu has a key.
Finally, Beomgyu takes out the keycard and opens the door. He goes inside first, Soobin on his tail. They take their shoes off and leave them at the entrance.
As Soobin puts on the hotel slippers, a door clicks open. "I'll shower first," Beomgyu announces, his voice a tad bit high. Then the bathroom door slams shut behind him.
Huh, weird.
Beomgyu's reaction is over the top, like they were the ones making out in front of two strangers and not the other way around.
A gentle breeze brushes his skin. The artificial air current comes from the ventilation duct. He lets out a breath of relief at the unexpected cooling draft and basks in the refreshing feeling.
He chooses a change of clothes and afterward finds a clean towel near the nightstand next to his bed.
He scans the room. His side has clothes scattered randomly on the floor, and the bedsheets are all tangled up, while Beomgyu's side is spotless. He ponders for a bit (two seconds) and settles for sitting down in a chair on Beomgyu's side of the bedroom.
To pass the time while waiting for Beomgyu to come out, Soobin checks his phone. He hasn't looked at it that much since they went out to stroll on the beach.
There are a few texts from Taehyun asking how they are doing. He texts back some of the pictures he took today, mostly of the scenery.
Phu Quoc is, to put it simply, quite nice.
The island is private and lenient in a way Seoul isn't—hasn't been for years. It's also different from Japan or the U.S. or other tour stops where they are aware that thousands of people in the city know them, that they are there to see them perform, and some even come from other parts of the country (or from abroad) exclusively for their concert.
They are in a different country, one that speaks an entirely different language, the only phrases they know being 'hello,' 'thanks,' and 'please.' Also, it's not like either of them is proficient in English the way Kai, Yeonjun, and Taehyun are, and yet it has been so much fun. Being with Beomgyu always is.
Traveling together turned out to be extremely comfortable, perhaps because they are best friends and have been living together for years.
It was almost as if they were two common guys on a trip. No staff, no cameras, no pressure. Simply a pair of friends on vacation. Soobin hadn't felt so free and happy in a long time.
Although some fans recognized them, most of the time they didn't approach them, and when they did, the interactions were brief and friendly.
He wished they could stay longer.
Sadly, like everything in life, their precious vacation had to come to an end. Today is the last night of their trip. Tomorrow they will be back in Seoul, back to their more complex reality.
After a few minutes, Beomgyu gets out of the shower. His hair is damp, drops of water fall onto his shirt, but he doesn't mind them. "That was the best shower I've ever had, seriously." He's beaming, back to his usual self.
Maybe he was acting so strange before because of the heat?
When he spots Soobin, his eyes narrow. "You better not mess up my side too, Choi Soobin."
Soobin rolls his eyes. "You're such a clean freak, Choi Beomgyu." He stands up from the chair, and as he passes by Beomgyu's side, he rubs his gluey hand on his arm.
"You are such a jerk!" he squawks.
Soobin chuckles, proud of himself. "Love you too," he says before entering the bathroom.
There's steam everywhere, and the mirror is foggy. The tiles, humid with condensed vapor.
A stifling sensation washes over him as the warm steam envelops him. It's beyond his comprehension how Beomgyu can shower with boiling water even in this heat. He always does it, even in summer.
Without much thought, he takes his clothes off and rushes to the shower. He uses cold water, as any sane person would.
The cubicle smells like flowers and something sweet thanks to Beomgyu's shower products.
He doesn't get what's wrong with using the products that the hotel provided, but he uses the lavender shampoo that Beomgyu brought anyway.
When he gets out of the bathroom, Beomgyu is already on the balcony, seated in one of the cane basket chairs. Soobin leaves the towel open on the chair he used before and joins him outside.
He watches as Beomgyu holds the camera in his hands. He's biting his lower lip absentmindedly. He's so engrossed that he doesn't notice when Soobin creeps up behind him and brings his head near to his to get a better view of whatever he's looking at.
As he peeks over his shoulder, he finds that Beomgyu is checking—again—the photos they took earlier. Specifically, a photo he took of Soobin. Except, upon further inspection, he realizes that the photo in question is one he doesn't remember posing for.
In the snapshot he's looking at his phone; it was taken during the golden hour, so the sunbeams illuminate the entire frame with a warm hue. The background is slightly blurred, the main focus on Soobin.
It's a beautiful photo.
"You need to send me that one. Maybe I'll post it." Beomgyu gets startled by the sudden comment, finally becoming aware that he has company.
Beomgyu turns his head and flinches once again when he notices how close their faces are. He places a hand on his chest. "Jesus, hyung," he croaks. "You are going to kill me."
Soobin smirks, their faces still close but not as much as before, due to Beomgyu leaning back to put some distance between them. "Because I'm too handsome?"
Beomgyu wrinkles his nose at him. "Oh my god," he groans. "Please next time remind me to not travel together with you."
"Why is that?" He rights himself and walks to the opposite side of the balcony to grab the other chair they have. The rough cane material scrapes his fingers a bit.
"You become an imp when you relax."
Soobin snickers. "Now you know how I feel every day around you." He pulls the basket chair closer to Beomgyu's before seating himself on it.
"You love when I behave like a brat." He sticks his tongue out like a little kid.
"Huh? I do not~" Soobin taunts him.
Beomgyu crosses his arms, the camera lying hazardously on his legs. "Don't pretend."
"Okay, maybe a little." Soobin grins and reaches to hold the camera to prevent it from falling.
"Go figure," he scoffs, but the subtle upturn of one corner of his mouth gives him away.
He smiles and bumps his head gently against Beomgyu's. "You got any good ones?" he asks, pushing the camera completely into Beomgyu's grasp.
"Mmm. A few." Beomgyu skims through the pictures carelessly, pausing more seconds at some of the shots. His hair smells like lavender, just like Soobin's.
"Only a few?" he probes. "We took, like, a thousand photos just today."
"You should already know that bamgyuuuu has high standards." Beomgyu shrugs.
Now that Beomgyu opened an official Instagram account, he's dead set on getting flawless photos to post on it. They must have the perfect angle, the perfect lighting, and the perfect "vibes".
It just happens to be that he considers Soobin's shots the most fitting for the "vibes" he's going for, the same way Soobin prefers the pictures that Beomgyu takes of him for page.soobin.
Despite that, most of the photos they took are just for the memories, only for their eyes to see. Some pictures are not necessarily silly or embarrassing, just… raw.
There's one he took of Beomgyu on their first morning here. He was aiming for it to join his collection of hideous photos of the members—he has a whole folder for those on his phone's gallery—it was just his luck that Beomgyu is a sleeping beauty. In all fairness, it's his fault: he has seen him like that countless times; he should know better by now.
That photo might be his favorite one from the whole trip, but he would never admit that to anyone, not when it involves acknowledging that he likes the concept of Beomgyu's rosy cheeks, disheveled hair, and pouty mouth, or that he finds his puffy nose adorable.
He doesn't think he would ever show it to anyone, not even Beomgyu. Especially not Beomgyu. Not happening.
Beomgyu stops at a photo that Soobin took of him. In the photo, he's making a foolish face. Soobin remembers that he stopped making that face as soon as he saw the camera, but he still managed to get a shot.
Beomgyu's thumb hovers around the buttons. Soobin can tell that he is considering deleting it.
"Don't." Soobin presses the button to the next photo. Out of the corner of his eye, he sees Beomgyu looking at him. "I like that one. You look cute in it. Or if you want to delete it, at least send it to me first," he jokes.
The reply never arrives, so Soobin decides to turn his head to face him. They are even closer than when he sneaked up on him just a moment ago. It goes to the extent that he could count Beomgyu's long eyelashes one by one if he wanted.
For some reason, he casts his eyes downward and catches Beomgyu sinking his teeth into his lower lip, just like he was doing when he was looking at Soobin's photo. He raises his hand and slides his thumb over Beomgyu's chapped lip to put a halt to the biting.
"You're going to make it bleed." He frowns as he scans his mouth carefully.
When he shifts his gaze upward and takes in Beomgyu' crimson face—even his ears had reddened—Soobin fully realizes that this could be taken the wrong way and potentially make him uncomfortable.
Before he can justify his actions, a sharp knock at the door is heard from inside.
"Oh!" Beomgyu cries out. Soobin winces at the piercing volume of his voice. "I forgot I ordered room service." He scrambles from his seat.
"I'll get it," Soobin says, but as he tries to get up from the chair, Beomgyu cuts him.
"No, no. I got it." He puts the camera square in Soobin's hands and goes inside to open the door.
Soobin turns a deaf ear to his words. Instead of staying still, he turns off the camera and places it inside the case that was next to the leg of the chair Beomgyu was sitting on, and then decides to go inside.
His eyes go immediately to the tray in Beomgyu's hands. There are summer rolls, spring rolls, pho—who would have guessed—and another soup he doesn't recognize, plus two glasses of soda and a green pastry made of rice that he forgot the name of.
"Do you want to give us a food coma?" he asks when he notices the amount of food that is on the tray.
"It's our last day here." Beomgyu pouts.
Soobin puts the camera case on Beomgyu's bed. "Let me." He approaches him and takes the tray from his hands.
Beomgyu casts a suspicious glance at him. "Hyung, no offense," he says as he follows him closely. "But I don't really trust you with this." He tries to take the tray back, but Soobin is already on his way to the balcony.
"What? What do you mean?" One of the glasses of soda tilts dangerously, but before it can spill, Beomgyu grabs it—along with the other glass.
"This is precisely what I mean," he groans. "You are so fucking clumsy."
"I am not that clumsy," Soobin grumbles.
"You totally are!"
He sets the tray precariously on the table by the veranda. "See? All good." Soobin smiles at him, pleased.
Beomgyu sighs, unimpressed. "Lets eat."
They sit on the dining table chairs, facing each other. He didn't realize how hungry he was until now. They enjoy their meal in silence. Beomgyu scrolls through his phone at moments, and Soobin busies himself exclusively with the food.
As expected, he ends up eating most of the food.
The dishes clink as Beomgyu arranges them on the tray, then he stands up to take it inside.
Soobin slouches back in the chair, closes his eyes, and lets out a sigh. After eating that much, lying down on his messy bed doesn't sound half bad.
Usually they don't eat much, too worried about gaining weight and being scolded by the company or risking not fitting into their concert costumes. But they're on vacation, so who cares? They have been eating three meals per day, and it's great.
A chill hits him as an icy object is put against his left cheek.
He opens his eyes and sees the devilish grin on Beomgyu's face. "You promised to drink with me." He has two cans of beer in his hands.
"I guess I did." Soobin grabs the can of beer that he's pushing towards him. Beomgyu smiles happily.
Soobin gets up sluggishly and sits in the cane basket chair from before. He opens the can and takes a sip. The beer tastes sharp at first but gets fruity as he savors it. It's good, not the best he had ever drunk, but tasty nonetheless.
"Not cockroaches today."
Beomgyu moans. "Oh my God, don't remind me."
"You are acting as if you were the one who got rid of it." He huffs and drinks a bit more beer.
"My Soobinie hyung is so reliable~" Beomgyu pinches Soobin's cheeks; his hands are humid with the condensation on the beer can. "What would I do without my hyungie?"
Beomgyu is pulling off that exaggerated aegyo act he always does when he wants to be annoying: pouting mouth, puffy cheeks, and over-the-top blinking. Soobin shouldn't find it so endearing. It used to be irking, but now he can't help but deem it cute.
Still, he has a reputation to maintain, so he rolls his eyes and sighs, making Beomgyu giggle. Soobin drinks more beer, this time a bigger gulp.
The night goes by like that. They relax, chat, and drink beer.
Currently, they stay in a comfortable silence. Their shared playlist is playing in the background. A heartbreak song. Not really the vibes of the night, but the song is great.
Soobin is starting to feel tipsy, his mind a little fuzzy.
He's looking at Beomgyu, and Beomgyu is looking up at the sky. His gaze fixed on the moon, practically mesmerized by it. It's difficult to appreciate the moon in Seoul because of the light pollution and all.
Soobin is not one to duel in that sort of thing, but Beomgyu is a romantic. He likes to look at the scenery through the window when they ride the van for their schedules and finds beauty in rainy days and the moonlight.
It's cute, though.
The way he observes the moon, you would think it's going to disappear as soon as he stops looking at it.
They are sitting side by side, their knees bump, and their shoulders have been locked together for a while, a firm and constant pressure. They are so close, and he can't stop staring at Beomgyu, doesn't want to.
He's pretty.
Beomgyu has always been pretty, but in this moment, wearing a t-shirt far too big for him, with his reddened cheeks because of the beer and the moonlight reflecting on his face… He's the prettiest.
Idol Beomgyu is a world apart from off-camera Beomgyu. The former is full of charisma, and the latter can only be described as warm. Both of them can be annoying sometimes, but both of them are always cute.
As if sensing his eyes on him, Beomgyu stops stargazing and turns his head in his direction.
Big brown eyes stare at him as if he were the moon itself. He has been at the receiving end of that gaze plenty of times, but there are times when his heart starts pounding dangerously as it happens.
He has not dwelt on that fact too much. Ignorance is bliss or whatever.
And yet, at this very moment he can't take his eyes off Beomgyu. He can't stop that relentless feeling that is starting to bubble in the pit of his stomach and expands to his chest like wildfire: heavy, hot, and overwhelming, so overwhelming.
It's almost like he had lost his ability to breathe, engulfed by the flames.
Then, a sudden thought pops into his mind.
I want to be by his side forever.
That's why, before he can process his own intentions, he takes one of Beomgyu's hands and intertwines their fingers.
Beomgyu doesn't even flinch. After all these years, all the members are used to skinship within the group. Besides, Soobin gets clingy when he drinks.
What's not common is his intense gaze on him.
Beomgyu squirms in his seat and then speaks. "What are you looking at?"
"You." He doesn't miss a beat.
"Am I handsome?" he asks, raising and lowering his eyebrows playfully.
"Beautiful," Soobin mumbles softly. So quietly that Beomgyu wouldn't be able to hear it if they weren't so close.
"Not handsome?" Beomgyu pouts and shoves his shoulder.
"Not my fault you have a pretty face." He shrugs, a hint of a smile on his face.
Actually, Beomgyu is very handsome, but he's more pretty than anything else. Still, it's funny to tease him.
Beomgyu sticks his tongue out. Soobin merely laughs.
They call each other "best friends". Sometimes, if they're being sentimental, "soulmates", but suddenly the meaning of those words isn't deep enough. They can't fully describe how much Soobin cares about Beomgyu.
Honestly, he just wants to spend the rest of his life with Beomgyu. Make him smile and comfort him when he's feeling down, to be that person he seeks in every situation.
Maybe something more, but he's too drunk to find the exact words for it.
"We should totally open a coffee shop after we leave the idol life," he blurts out instead.
Smooth, really smooth, Choi Soobin.
He nods, satisfied with his words.
Beomgyu's eyes widen slightly. He doesn't say anything, just looks at him. Soobin stares back, except he's tipsy, so he can't help it when his eyes drift to Beomgyu's lips.
It's only for one second or two that he allows himself to glance at those perfect, rosy lips. After he averts his eyes from his mouth, he sees in real time how Beomgyu's redness extends to his ears and neck.
How cute.
Soobin wants to pinch his cheeks (and maybe kiss them too).
Perhaps if he were a little bit sober, he would find that weird, but at this very moment he's happy to hold Beomgyu's hand and watch him get flustered because of him.
"I know," Beomgyu says at last. "I've been telling you since forever that it would be an absolute hit, dummy."
Soobin does feel like a dummy at this moment. Their closeness is enough to make all his thoughts disappear, so his only response is to squeeze Beomgyu's hand.
Beomgyu doesn't take his hand away, and neither does Soobin. So they keep holding hands.
Phu Quoc is quite hot even at night. Still, they don't mind when their hands start to sweat.
They keep chatting and joking for a while, then he feels a weight on his shoulder. Beomgyu's head is resting on it, his eyes are closed, but he's not asleep yet.
Soobin grimaces as he drinks the last drop of his (already warm) beer. The rich taste of the alcohol lingers on his tongue.
They already ran out of beer, and, most importantly, there's a flight they need to catch tomorrow.
He puts the can of beer on the floor and asks, "Want to sleep?" Beomgyu nods, his head remaining put against Soobin's shoulder. He strokes Beomgyu's locks tenderly. Even with the intense odor of the beer surrounding them, he's still able to get a whiff of lavender shampoo in Beomgyu's hair. "Well, get up unless you want to sleep here." Soobin shakes his shoulder a little.
"I might." He nuzzles his head on Soobin, unbothered.
He hums. More extreme measures are needed. "I've heard that there are many bugs at dawn around here." Soobin informs offhandedly.
Beomgyu opens one eye and then grunts before standing up ungracefully. "You take a shower first." He kicks his foot lightly.
"Is it really necessary?" He doesn't know why he asked; he already knows the answer.
"It is." Beomgyu crosses his arms, trying to show how serious he is about it. And he really is. Soobin knows he can be strict with personal hygiene sometimes, but why can't he do it first?
"Then you go first." He kicks Beomgyu's foot back.
He narrows his eyes. "If you fall asleep while I'm showering, I know you will refuse to get up and take a shower."
Soobin snorts. "I won't even be able to wake you up if you fall asleep."
"I won't fall asleep as long as you go shower right now, but if you keep whining all night, I might!" Beomgyu puffs out his cheeks, annoyed.
Soobin knows this is a lost battle.
He's tempted to ask if they could shower together to get over it quickly, but it doesn't feel like a good idea. They had showered together many times, especially when they were rookies, but today doesn't seem like the other times.
"Alright."
So Soobin showers first.
On the positive side, he doesn't have to deal with the steam Beomgyu leaves behind when he takes a shower.
Despite his clumsy state, he spends less than five minutes in the bathroom. It'd have been even less if he weren't wasted, though.
When he gets out of the bathroom, Beomgyu is sitting in the chair by his bed, playing with his phone. There's a towel over his head.
"All done."
Beomgyu raises his head. The towel slides to his shoulders. "And I didn't fall asleep, see?" He dares to say that he can barely keep his eyes open.
"Sure, sure." Soobin side-eyes him, judgmental, when Beomgyu lets out a long yawn on his way to the bathroom.
He looks at his own bed; it's messy. Beomgyu's looks more comfortable, cozy.
He throws the damp towel into his bed and doesn't think twice before lying down on Beomgyu's. He's only going to close his eyes for a bit anyway…
When he opens his eyes again, the light bulb has been turned off.
There's a dim light coming from the drawn curtains, but it's not bright enough to have a clear view of the room or Beomgyu.
He hears some rustling, and, shortly after, a weight lies down next to him. He flinches.
There's a warm presence, lavender shampoo, and something sweet.
He turns his head to look at Beomgyu, though he can't see him beyond the faint outline of his silhouette. "What are you doing?" he groans. He almost had a heart attack.
"You fell asleep in my bed," Beomgyu whines. He sounds close. He is close. So close, Soobin feels the warmth of his breath.
"Couldn't you ask me to get out instead of scaring me?" He tries to get up, but Beomgyu pushes him down.
"It's whatever." He takes Soobin's arm and pulls him closer. "Just hug me and shut up. I'll even let you be the big spoon tonight."
Soobin huffs. "You say that as if I'm not always the big spoon."
"You say that as if you don't like being the big spoon." Beomgyu bites back.
"Just as much as you like being the little spoon".
Still, he hugs him from behind. His front against Beomgyu's back and his palm across his tummy.
It's warm.
A few days later, Beomgyu sends him the silly photo Soobin took of him, the one he was debating on deleting, and Soobin told him to send it to him because he looked cute. No explanation—none was needed, though.